Artikel
Perspectives of technical aids providers on establishing patient safety in home mechanical ventilation
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Autoren
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Susanne Stark
- Institute of Health and Nursing Science, Charité, Berlin, Germany
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Yvonne Lehmann
- Institute of Health and Nursing Science, Charité, Berlin, Germany
| Veröffentlicht: | 5. Juli 2021 |
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Gliederung
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Background: Home mechanical ventilation (HMV) requires integrated and coordinated services to ensure safe healthcare. Technical aid providers in Germany are attributed legal responsibilities in establishing safety for ventilator-associated devices. However, it is largely unknown, whether and how this is achieved.
Objectives: As part of a larger study, the providers’ perspectives on safety in ventilator-associated technical aid supply were investigated. The particular focus was on perceived safety, as well as on roles and strategies in establishing safety.
Design and methods: With an explorative qualitative design, eleven episodic interviews with representatives of technical aids providers were conducted. Interviews were analyzed using content analysis, between 08-10/2020.
Results: The interviewees – majorly qualified in intensive nursing care – ascribe themselves a primary responsibility for establishing safety in HMV. In addition to device supply, the majority of their tasks comprise contractually agreed instruction and training in device application. Furthermore, they provide healthcare services, such as tracheostomy tube changes to some extent. Additionally, they adopt discharge management tasks and support interprofessional communication. Interviewees identify primary safety risks and challenges to their work in healthcare fragmentation and lacking accountability, coordination problems or structural deficiencies, such as shortage and qualification deficits among nurses and physicians.
Conclusions: The results complement existing evidence on safety in a highly complex healthcare field. They can contribute to develop recommendations for improved HMV technical aid supply. This should include discourse on whether and how assigned responsibilities can adequately be addressed by providers, carefully taking into account the mandates of highly qualified nurses.
Conflict of interest: Both authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Funding: The Project received funding by G-BA– Innovationsfonds (funding code of “SAVENT – Safety dimensions of aids supply in home care of ventilated patients”: 01VSF18042). The funding body played no role in the design of the study and collection, analysis, and interpretations of data and in writing the manuscript.
